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Borderlands: The Handsome Collection (PS4) Review

 
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At a Glance...
 

Formats: PS4 (Reviewed), Xbox One
 
Genre: ,
 
Year:
 
Publisher:
 
Developer: , , ,
 
Final Score
8.0
8.0/ 10


User Rating
1 total rating

 

We Liked?


  • An absolute mountain of content
  • Strong writing and good humour
  • Shoot and loot mechanics are great fun
  • Diverse range of characters to suit all players
  • Ability to carry characters and progress over from previous generation versions
  • Not So Much?


  • Occasionally choppy frame rates, particularly in The Pre-Sequel
  • Some odd glitches and crashes
  • Having to close the application in order to switch games is a hassle


  • Final Fiendish Findings?

    Borderlands: The Handsome Collection is a great collection of two fun RPG/shooter games and all the DLC that has some with them. If you’ve played both games on the previous consoles, there isn’t much point to you playing these. But if you missed both or even one of them, and didn’t play the DLC, then this is a great bundle at a bargain price. There are some small niggles and technical issues, but this is a great collection and one of the strongest remasters on the new consoles, and will provide you with many hours of fun and challenge.

    0
    Posted April 8, 2015 by

     
    Final Fiendish Findings?
     
     

    We’re approaching 18 months into the life cycle of the PS4 and the Xbox One, and one thing that neither console is short of is HD remastered versions of titles from late in the previous console generation.  2K have decided to get on this with the release of ‘Borderlands: The Handsome Collection’, which contains a whole heap of shoot and loot goodness for a reasonable price.

    The Handsome Collection consists of two games, 2012′s Borderlands 2 and 2014′s Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel.  Both games have been upgraded to have 1080p graphics, improved frame rates, and the collection also includes all DLC that has been produced for both games, with the ability to carry over your characters and progress from the previous generation versions of the games, although this will require you to have the previous console to the one you’re playing on.

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    Borderlands 2 is the sequel to the original Borderlands, and sees a new team of Vault Hunters on the planet Pandora, trying to find riches while fighting off the villainous Hyperion Corporation and it’s CEO, Handsome Jack.  Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel takes place between the original Borderlands and Borderlands 2 and sees you on Pandora’s moon, assisting a pre-CEO Jack in trying to reclaim the Helios Station that has been taken over by the Lost Legion.  The Pre-Sequel also includes some new mechanics, including new vehicles, low gravity physics and  an O2 meter system.

    The Borderlands games are First Person Shooters with RPG elements.  Killing enemies and completing quests gives you experience which enables you to level up and upgrade your skills.  Each of the various character classes are distinct and they all have their own individual special skill to utilize to help you.  As you progress, you will encounter a wide variety of NPCs, both friendly and deadly, all with their own distinct personalities and dialogue.  The entire game is set in a gritty looking, yet cel shaded environment with a personality all of it’s own.  Although admittedly, ‘The Pre-Sequel’ doesn’t have quite the variety and personality that Borderlands 2 does, but it’s a fun game all the same.

    Borderlands has always been an addictive experience with it’s shoot and loot mechanics, with enemies exploding in a cloud of money, equipment and guns to collect.  There are hundreds of unique weapons in each game, and you will find yourself comparing gear constantly to make sure you have a wide range of weaponry and items to get you through as many different situations as possible, and you will need to be prepared, as you never know what the games are going to throw at you next.

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    As always, while Borderlands is enjoyable on your own, it’s much more interesting and varied with friends, and that hasn’t changed here.  If you have a bunch of friends that you want to play with locally, there’s a new 4-player split screen mode, taking advantage of the new hardware’s capabilities.  However, when you have four players, the frame rate is reduced from 60 to 30, which was planned.  There’s also some weird problems with the UI scaling in each individual window, but these aren’t particularly huge problems.

    For all the talk of improvements, there are some minor issues with the game.  The improved frame rate isn’t always consistent in the games, particular in the pre-sequel, where I did find some slowdown in a few sections.  There were bugs as well, such as the entire screen going black except for the HUD, which I tried to fix by going back to the title screen, but then the game crashed.  Also, if you want to switch games, you have to exit the application and start it up again, which is another minor annoyance.  But it’s not that much effort, seeing as the game selection screen boots up immediately when you start the game.

    All in all, this is a fantastic collection.  Between the two games and all the DLC included, there is potentially hundreds of hours of play here.  Not all of the DLC is great, but there’s plenty of good stuff for you to work your way through.

    FINAL THOUGHTS
    Borderlands: The Handsome Collection is a great collection of two fun RPG/shooter games and all the DLC that has some with them.  If you’ve played both games on the previous consoles, there isn’t much point to you playing these.  But if you missed both or even one of them, and didn’t play the DLC, then this is a great bundle at a bargain price.  There are some small niggles and technical issues, but this is a great collection and one of the strongest remasters on the new consoles, and will provide you with many hours of fun and challenge.


    Mike Jones

     
    Mike first started writing about video games at the age of 10 when he wrote a Sonic Chaos review for his school newspaper, and hasn't looked back since. Favourite game genres include MMOs, racing games and puzzlers, but he'll try most things once.


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